The current research is intended to examine the ability of herpes simplex viruses, alone and in combination with chemical carcinogens to function in transformation of the oral mucosa. The studies concentrate on changes in the cell surface structures and components, particularly alterations in lipids, glycolipids and glycoproteins, that occur in the early time periods following infection. These components are known to affect cell social behavior and tissue differentiation, and change following viral and chemical induced transformation. Mucosal tissues are grown in vitro and infected with herpes simplex viruses which have been shown to have the ability to transform cells. At varying periods of time following infection, the explanted tissues are harvested and examined for chemical changes in the cell lipid, glycolipid and glycoprotein componets. Neutral lipids and phospholipids are separated and identified by column, paper and gas chromatography and autoradiography. Glycolipids are to be separated by thin layer chromatography and autoradiography. Glycoprotein determinations are made by radioactively labeling glycoproteins which will subsequently be separated by acrylamide gel electrophoresis and radioactivity determined. Enhancement of transformation by chemical will be determined using cultures of epithelial cells infected with virus or treated with virus and a chemical carcinogen. The relative ability of the chemical to increase viral induced transformation will be determined. In addition, it is proposed to attempt to develop a method of culturing epithelial cells using conditioned medium or cell extracts, rather than the feeder layers of irradiated 3T3 fibroblasts. Morphological studies on epithelial tissues conducted at an ultrastructural level to supplement the analytic studies and demonstrate decreased numbers and altered shapes of microvilli and fewer as well as fewer and smaller intercellular junctions.